The Infection: Survivors

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

I woke up with someone shaking me. Groggily, I tried to keep away the hand on my shoulder but it wouldn't budge. I was still tired of the long walk and I wanted nothing but sleep for a few more minutes. I was rocked again. Frustrated, I opened my eyes, lazily, to see Kane's face inches away from my own. He covered my mouth before I could scream.

"Don't be scared, my angel, but we need to leave."

"Why?" I whispered against his large palm, panic invading me.

"There are infected down there, I heard them. We need to leave before they come here."

My breath became ragged and my heart tightened with anxiety of being trapped in that place with Lord knows how many infected. Kane didn't miss my little anxiety attack and pushed me against him, hugging me. I couldn't talk, my mouth was wide open.

His gesture of comfort was unexpected but I was grateful that he had done it, it was calming me. I relaxed for a few seconds in his embrace, letting him comfort me. However, I pulled way, knowing that we had to leave.

Kane hesitated slightly but ended up releasing me, pulling me to my feet and grabbing my backpack, that was much lighter because we were running out of food and water, while pulling me out of the door.

I tried to walk beside him but he growled and pulled me behind him, gazing at me to warn me to stay behind him. I rolled my eyes at his protectiveness.

Something snarled on the floor below and sounds of fighting reached our ears. Kane grumbled and snaked a hand behind his back, pushing me against him. All the muscles of his back were tense.

Looking at me briefly, he gestured the stairs and I knew we had to start moving.

Slowly, we walked to the stairs, going down to the hall. We still had ten steps left, when he stopped. Leaning against the wall, we peered around the corner to see a large group of infected wrecking the place even more. They were many, at least fifteen.

My stomach dropped when I realised we would never manage to pass through them without having to fight. Kane knew it too.

He pushed me against the wall and leaned until his mouth was pressed against my ear.

"I'm going to open a path. When I tell you, you're gonna run and you will not stop until you feel you're going to cough out your lungs, understood?" He murmured, softly but demanding.

I wanted to argue but I knew that was no use, I didn't have my gun and I was completely useless without it.

My shoulders sunk, worry and dread weighing on them.

Kane raised my chin and looked straight into my eyes.

"Don't worry about me and, whatever you do, don't look back."

I lowered my head and it was enough agreement for him.

In a blink of an eye, he shifted and the sounds of snarls and mauled flesh began.

I tried my best to ignore those sounds, I even covered my ears, but I could still heard the wet sounds of blood and flesh being ripped. And my worst worry was that maybe those sounds were coming from Kane. I gripped the backpack tightly, forcing myself to take deep breaths and peer at them.

Kane was fighting them off but he didn't managed to rip off the heads of most of them, so they kept coming after him, mutilated and with limbs missing. They were too many and Kane hadn't rested much, his weariness was evident but he didn't stop. At some point, he looked at me and howled. There were only 6 left and they were only focused on him so I could pass, if I was fast. I prepared myself to ran and, when the window of opportunity appeared, I sprinted as fast as I could.